Brasilia to kick start FIVB Beach Volleyball SWATCH World Tour for third year running

The Brazilian capital is the first of 14 events on the FIVB Beach Volleyball SWATCH World Tour 2012

Lausanne,
Switzerland, January 26, 2012 – Brasilia will be the starting point for
the FIVB Beach Volleyball SWATCH World Tour for the third year in a row
from April 16 to 22 after the Brazilian capital was confirmed as the
host of the first stage of the 2012 circuit on Thursday.

The city
has hosted a men’s event since 2009 and a women’s competition since
2010 with USA’s Todd Rogers and Phil Dalhausser and home duo Juliana
Felisberta da Silva and Lariss França picking up the gold medals at last
year’s tournament.

Brazil has staged a FIVB Beach Volleyball
SWATCH World Tour event every year since the start of the international
circuit for men in 1987 and for women in 1992.

"It's an honour
for the Federal capital of Brazil and for the people of Brasilia to
host, for the fourth consecutive year, the Brazilian leg of the Swatch
World Tour,” Brasilia Governor Agnelo Queiroz said. “This year is
special in particular, as it is a trial for the London Olympic Games,
and at the same time consolidates Brasilia’s reputation as a capital for
sports.”

The 2012 Tour will feature a total of 14 events in 15
countries over a seven-month period, including a record-breaking nine
Grand Slam tournaments, increasing from six in 2011.

There will also be eight Open events, six of which will be single-gender competitions.

With
total prize money of $7.3 million on offer, the FIVB Beach Volleyball
SWATCH World Tour 2012 will include Grand Slams offering $600,000 prize
money in Beijing, Moscow, Rome, Stavanger, Gstaad, Klagenfurt, Stare
Jablonki as well as Shanghai, which has been upgraded from an Open,
event and Berlin which may return to the calendar for the first time
since 2008. The latter event will be confirmed in the near future.